This frittata is the perfect way to use those garden treasures! Zucchini + dill pairs perfectly with the squash notes that you get from the beautiful zucchini squash blossoms!
Squash blossoms only come once a year but you’d be amazed how easy they are to grow! I always dreamed of having these beautiful blossoms at my culinary disposal and this year my dream came true!
Our garden has been a work in progress. My mom always had beautiful flowers in the yard growing up but I never learned to grow a vegi garden. It wasn’t until I met my husband and he had a small garden in his backyard with dreams of so much more! Check out this post for the full story on the “more” part:).
When we first moved to our house my husband built me a beautiful fenced-in garden (to keep the hungry deer out). I read a gardening book and gave it a go. I grew some things but I never really took off with it.
Then we started our grand adventure of a project! To learn more about plants I joined the local Master Gardeners. I learned quite a bit that helped me be able to grow in our Aquaponics System. It was so fun to see we could grow beautiful produce + be able to cook with it…my favorite part;).
Fast forward to last winter + a big stow storm equaled a collapsed greenhouse (don’t worry…we are re-building…check out this post to read all about it!).
We decided to turn lemons into lemonade or squash blossoms into frittata;) + use our aquaponics grow beds for garden beds! My husband worked his hiney off to move the beds + lava rock into the garden + put in drip lines for me. It turned out better than I could have imagined!! I feel so blessed to have a beautiful garden this year! It really is easier than you think (or I thought;)) to have a garden!
Aside from making sure we had a good soil mix in our beds including our own horse + cow manure (aged at least a year to prevent burning) + local organic planting mix from Dirt Huggers (I think my husband added a little extra dirt as well) + a drip system…all I did is plant the seeds directly into the bed and have watched them grow into gorgeous zucchini plants! Once you get a good foundation in place it really is that easy!!
Growing your own food + cooking with it is so rewarding + joyous! I truly hope that you get to experience this in your life…even if it’s just a kitchen window herb garden. I believe this is the way God intended us to live + eat!
This frittata recipe is very versatile! Throw in what you love + have! That’s the great thing about growing a garden…you really get to eat seasonally! Next time I make this one I would add 1/2 the amt of milk + skip the broiling at the end (I think it got a little too brown). The squash blossoms really do have a fun “squash” flavor to them!
For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations. -Isaiah 61:11 (NIV)
Update (8/9/19)! Made it again with 1/4 cup milk instead of 1/2 cup + didn’t broil it and liked it so much better! + You can see the squash blossoms better:). Adjusted recipe below.
How to harvest + prepare squash blossoms for cooking!
My husband was worried that we weren’t going to get squash if I was using the blossoms but I found out there is no reason to fret! There are male + female squash blossoms (all squash…not just zucchini)! The pollinating bee lands on the male blossom and transfers the pollen to the female blossom to produce the fruit! Just stick to picking the male blossoms + you don’t have to worry about losing squash! The male ones are the long skinny strands that stick up + are showier. The female ones are fruit-producing and will have a small “fruit” at the base of the flower…be sure not to pick that if you want squash!
- Harvest the male flowers only…see above.
- Rinse inside + out with cool water to get off any bugs. Let dry on a towel.
- Remove inner pistil (male) or stamen (female). Some people can have an allergic reaction to the pollen.
- Now you are ready to enjoy these beautiful edible flowers!
Reference:
https://www.berkeleywellness.com/healthy-eating/food/article/zucchini-blossoms-stop-and-eat-flowers
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/squash/female-male-squash-blossoms.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/squash/harvesting-squash-flowers.htm
https://www.proflowers.com/blog/flower-anatomy
Squash Blossom Frittata w/ Dill + Zucchini {Paleo, Whole30, GF, DF}
Equipment
- 10 inch Cast Iron Pan (not mandatory)
Ingredients
- 10 eggs
- 1/4 cup full-fat canned coconut milk
- salt + pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh dill fronds + more for topping
- 1 tbsp solid virgin coconut oil
- 2 cups 3/4 to 1in. diced fresh zucchini
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- 4-5 whole zucchini/squash blossoms (cleaned + stamen/pistil removed)
- fresh dill flowers for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Crack 10 eggs into a bowl with the coconut milk, salt + pepper + whisk until frothy. Add in 2 tbsp dill fronds and whisk until incorporated.
- Heat a 10 in cast iron (or another oven-safe pan) with coconut oil over high heat. Toss in diced zucchini + stir to coat. Cook, stirring frequently enough to not burn but not too much to allow zucchini to get some good golden color for about 3 minutes. Sprinkle with a little salt + pepper after cooking (salt draws out liquid from zucchini which would affect browning).
- Add in garlic and cook until fragrant, about a minute or less.
- Turn heat down to medium + add in egg mixture. Cook for about one minute to begin cooking the eggs.
- Arrange + nestle in squash blossoms in a circular manner around the frittata. Use your discretion on how many will fit. I used 4.
- Transfer cast iron skillet into preheated oven + cook for about 17-20 minutes until middle is firm to the touch + eggs are set.
- Remove from oven + top with dill flowers and more chopped dill. Sprinkle with more salt + pepper if desired.
- Enjoy!
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